An Addendum on the John Howard Dinner
So the jury is still out on what "The Australian Black Pearl" involves. But here are some additional observations about the official White House dinner in honor of Australian Prime Minister John Howard.
First, with respect to the photo at left, from the Washington Post, one of you asked: "Who the hell is taking photos at the WaPo? [This photo makes] Howard look like Larry David with half his face covered."
Second, check out this dinner write-up, from an Aussie paper:
NORMALLY, when one world leader implies that another is bald and ugly, it would be safe to assume they do not get on so well.
Unless those leaders happen to be the US President, George Bush, and the Prime Minister, John Howard.
"Somebody said, 'You and John Howard appear to be so close, don't you have any differences?'," Mr Bush said when asked why they got on so well. "And I said 'Yes, he doesn't have any hair'." Even when Mr Bush tried to be serious about why he so admired Mr Howard, the jokes continued. "He may not be the prettiest person on the block but when he tells you something, you can take it to the bank," he said.
From our tipster: "WTF? That's about as bad as his offhanded remark to the wheelchair-bound senior last week, 'You look comfortable.' Is he drinking again or just stupid?"
We can't wait for the official dinner with the British Prime Minister, when Bush will deliver this encomium: "Tony Blair, he's an ugly sonuvabitch. But he's got our back in Iraq!"
Bald, Ugly, One Hell of a Guy: Bush on Howard [Sydney Morning Herald]